Gunman storms Kirkwood meeting

AP Photo/St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Robert Cohen

Officers keep watch outside City Hall in Kirkwood, Mo., where a gunman killed two police officers and three city officials before he was fatally shot by police. The gunman, Charles Lee Thornton, was well-known for disrupting council meetings to protest what he called persecution by city officials. The acrimony apparently stemmed from parking citations he had been issued.

Officers keep watch outside City Hall in Kirkwood, Mo., where a gunman killed two police officers and three city officials before he was fatally shot by police. The gunman, Charles Lee Thornton, was well-known for disrupting council meetings to protest what he called persecution by city officials. The acrimony apparently stemmed from parking citations he had been issued. (AP Photo/St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Robert Cohen)

Police cars surround Kirkwood City Hall after the shooting rampage, which began when the gunman burst into the city council meeting and opened fire, shouting "Shoot the mayor!" Kirkwood, a St. Louis suburb of about 27,000 people, is rarely the scene of violence; its biggest news this week had been the installation of cameras to catch drivers who run red lights.

Police cars surround Kirkwood City Hall after the shooting rampage, which began when the gunman burst into the city council meeting and opened fire, shouting "Shoot the mayor!" Kirkwood, a St. Louis suburb of about 27,000 people, is rarely the scene of violence; its biggest news this week had been the installation of cameras to catch drivers who run red lights. (AP Photo / St. Louis Post-Dispatch, J.B. Forbes)